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Friday, November 30, 2012

So Jamie Foxx calls Barack Obama "Our Lord and Savior" at the Soul Train Awards, now we have the crucified Obama painting, which is being exhibited at Bunker Hill Community College Art Gallery. It's part of the "Artists on the Stump- The Road to the White House 2012" exhibit, although artist Michael D'Antuono's painting "Truth"- which portrays Obama as a crucified Jesus Christ- was to be exhibited four years ago in New York City (Union Square) but never happened. Apparently, too many outraged people.

“I always regretted cancelling my exhibit in New York because I feel my First Amendment rights should override someone’s hurt feelings. We should celebrate the fact that we live in a country where we are given the freedom to express ourselves.”

A spokesperson for the art gallery told Fox News there hasn’t been any criticism of the painting. D’Antuono said the public exhibition “has afforded me the ability to right a wrong.”

“The crucifixion of the president was meant metaphorically,” he told Fox News. “My intent was not to compare him to Jesus.”

D’Antuono blamed the controversy on conservative media “trying to promote the idea that liberals believe the president to literally be our savior.”

In the aftermath of his aborted first attempt – the artist said he received more than 4,000 emails containing messages that were “anything but Christian-like.”

“But I accepted that it is their right to express themselves and hope that they now see it in their hearts to afford me the same right,” he said.

What I think most people find offensive (at least I do) is the deification of a man, metaphorical or not. There are many people who do happen to perceive Obama as a savior of sorts. Barbara A. Thompson, a professor at Florida A&M University even wrote a book about The Gospel According to Apostle Barack:

Yes, Barack had worked tirelessly on behalf of the American people, especially those who elected him in 2008. His followers needed to re-elect him to a second term, so that he could continue to accomplish the promises he made, thus, realizing his vision of America as a more perfect political union or "heaven here on earth" Then, as I began to contemplate ways to assist Barack in his 2012 re-election bid something miraculous happened. I felt God's (His) Spirit beckoning me in my dreams at night. Listening, cautiously, I learned that Jesus walked the earth to create a more civilized society, Martin (Luther King) walked the earth to create a more justified society, but, Apostle Barack, the name he was called in my dreams, would walk the earth to create a more equalized society, for the middle class and working poor. Apostle Barack, the next young leader with a new cause, had been taken to the mountaintop and allowed to see over the other side. He had the answers to unlock the kingdom of "heaven here on earth" for his followers. The answers were repeated - over and over - in speeches Barack had made from his presidential announcement to his inaugural address. Those speeches or his teachings contained the answers to the middle class and working poor people living in a "heaven here on earth" For when the answers were unlocked and enacted, Apostle Barack's vision of America would be realized.

It's hard to believe that there are still a slew of Western countries that still have blasphemy laws in their penal codes. Those laws don't belong in modern, free societies. It's not up to the court systems to punish people who blaspheme, that's up to the individual and his/her God, if they are believers. The West is not Pakistan (or any other Shariah compliant nation) with draconian, backward laws. This is the 21st century, and we need to start acting as if we live in a modern world.

At least the Dutch are on the right track. After a decade of trying, they've finally trashed their blasphemy law which was still on the books since the 1930s, though it had not used for fifty some odd years. Ironically, it was the conservative and far right parties in the Netherlands that wanted the law to remain intact. Their loss in the general elections this past September is credited for facilitating the lifting of the ban, along with Geert Wilders trial last year. According to Marc Veldt, of the University of Applied Sciences in Utrecht, says:

... the move to lift the ban on blasphemy was also an indirect result of the legal case involving anti-Islam Dutch politician Geert Wilders. In June 2011, a Dutch court ruled that Wilders had the right to criticize Islam, even though his opinions insulted many Muslims.

Wilders, who leads the Freedom Party, had described Islam as "fascist" and compared Islam's holy book, the Koran, to Adolf Hitler's autobiography and political manifesto "Mein Kampf." Amsterdam judge Marcel van Oosten said Wilders' statements were directed at Islam and not at Muslims. Van Oosten said the statements were "gross and denigrating" but still "acceptable within the context of public debate."

Wilders said at the time that the verdict was "not only an acquittal for me, but a victory for freedom of expression in the Netherlands."

The Netherlands still retains hate speech laws, however, and some Western countries have replaced old (Christian) blasphemy laws with revamped versions, like England with its law "against incitement to religious hatred." Ireland took it one step further:

Ireland introduced a new law in 2010 that makes blasphemy a crime punishable by a fine of up to 25,000 euros ($32,485). The Irish law defines blasphemy as "publishing or uttering matter that is grossly abusive or insulting in relation to matters sacred by any religion thereby intentionally causing outrage among a substantial number of adherents of that religion, with some defenses permitted."

That's a hefty fine, and if Ireland has any similar organization to the U.S. Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR), anyone critical of Islam better watch out.

Many are advocating getting rid of all blasphemy laws, with good reason. Padraig Reidy of London-based "Index on Censorship" says:

... blasphemy laws are no longer relevant in the 21st century. He says there is no place for a law defending religion, which he calls an "ideal." He says it should be people who have rights, not ideals.

"There's no question that blasphemy laws are a severe restriction on free speech. Any push back against blasphemy laws -- [against the notion that ideas] should be protected -- is a good thing. It's very important that blasphemy laws should be repealed," Reidy says.

On the other hand you have the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) pushing for a global blasphemy law, because they have no clue about the notion of free speech.

If we want to ensure that those of us who are critical of radical Islam, or any religion for that matter, continue to have the freedom to do so, then we need to make sure that every Western country that still has blasphemy laws on the books throws them out. And we must fight any organizations or special interest groups that try to make criticism of a religion a crime. There is a difference between criticism and inciting to religious hatred. Blasphemy laws belong in another century, not this one.

Thursday, November 29, 2012

An opinion piece by Nick Cohen on the UK Standpoint Magazine, discusses the cowardice of the liberal press when it comes to modern, westernized Muslim women and their tormentors.

Deepika Thathaal had dreams of being a pop singer when she was 17 and living in Norway with her parents. She embarked on that career and made a name for herself, that is, until the threats started.

Her opponents dialled her parents' home and bellowed out poisonous threats. They burst into her classroom and screamed that she was "a slut, a whore, a prostitute". They attacked her on the street and stormed the stage during a concert in Oslo.

So they moved to London, and she changed her name to Deeyah, thinking it would be more open and thus safer there. Not so.

She was forced to hire bodyguards. She was spat at in the street and warned that she would be cut into pieces. Deeyah could not take it. She and her liberal parents were living in fear.

So, in 2007 they picked up and moved, once again, this time to Atlanta, Georgia, and Deeyah gave up her singing to become a documentary filmmaker.

Deeyah did not collapse under the pressure of collective violence. Rather magnificently, she stopped wanting to be a celebrity, and decided to step up a gear and become a feminist activist instead. Banaz: An Honour Killing is the first result of her change of course. Her film (originally titled Banaz: A Love Story) tells the story of Banaz Mahmod, the daughter of Kurdish parents, who lived in Mitcham, South London. They married her when she was 17 to a Kurdish man, then aged 28, whom she barely knew. Her husband assaulted her all the time. "When he raped me it was like I was his shoe that he could wear whenever he wanted to," she explained. "I didn't know if this was normal in my culture, or here. I was 17."

What Cohen takes issue with is the fact that the liberal media has been woefully negligent when it comes to dealing with situations like Deeyah's. He says:

I am not being fanciful if I imagine that had her tormentors been Norwegian neo-Nazis or the BNP, Deeyah would have become an anti-racist hero: a Muslim Stephen Lawrence. Artists would make her struggle against prejudice their struggle. Politicians would invite her to Westminster and the European Parliament. The BBC would see to it that she was never off air. Liberal society would embrace her and define itself by its response to prejudice and violence.

The men who persecuted Deeyah in Norway and Britain were every bit as prejudiced and violent as neo-Nazis, but as it happens, they rallied under the banner of radical Islam rather than the swastika. A tiny difference, you might think. A mere trifle. But that tiny difference made all the difference in the world. No one came to Deeyah's defence. Not liberal-left or compassionate conservative politicians. Not the BBC or liberal press. Not Amnesty International or the "concerned" artists who take up so many leftish causes. No one cared. To defend an Asian woman from unprovoked attacks by Asian men was to their warped minds a racist or Islamophobic act. Unprotected and unnoticed, Deeyah slunk off to live in an anonymous suburb of Atlanta, and begin the long task of pulling herself together.

This animated cartoon attempts to simplify the Israeli/Palestinian conflict for those who seem to have a problem grasping the right of people to defend themselves. Set in a schoolyard, it does a great job.

Eight people directly or indirectly involved in the making or promoting of the anti-Islam film "Innocence of Muslims"- the video that sent the Muslim world into paroxysms of violence, and was initially blamed (by our government) for the deaths in Benghazi- have been sentenced to death for blasphemy by an Egyptian court. Yes, seven Egyptian Christian Copts, and even American Pastor Terry Jones of Gainesville, Florida were sentenced in absentia.

Jones, who leads a fringe Christian congregation of no more than 50, said in response to the sentencing that it "shows the true face of Islam."

"we can speak out here in America,” Jones said. “That freedom means that we criticize government leadership, religion even at times. Islam is not a religion that tolerates any type of criticism.”

And he's right. They've proved exactly what he's been rallying against with his Quran burnings.

Others sentenced were, Nakoula Basseley Nakoula (aka Mark Basseley Youssef, aka Sam Bacile) the producer of the film who is back in jail, for another year, in the U.S. for probation violation. The guy was a scam artist, and all those aliases he used before they finally tracked him down: not a good thing. Then there's Morris Sadek, who claims he had nothing to do with the film other than post it on his website. He too is a Coptic Christian activist living in the Chantilly, Virginia. Sadek said of the ruling:

“ [it] shows the world that the Muslim Brotherhood regime wants to shut up all the Coptic activists, so no one can demand Copts’ rights in Egypt.”

He too is right.

Not much is known about the other five defendants, and/or how they were involved with the film.

They include two who work with Sadek at a radical Coptic group in the U.S. that has called for an independent Coptic state, a priest who hosts TV programs from the U.S. and a lawyer living in Canada who has previously sued the Egyptian state over riots in 2000 that left 21 Christians dead.

The other person is a woman who converted to Christianity and is a staunch critic of Islam.

Calling for an independent Coptic State warrants the death penalty? Not surprising, I guess.

The arrest warrants for the eight individuals were issued back in September, and according to Egypt's official news media:

.. the court found the defendants guilty of harming national unity, insulting and publicly attacking Islam and spreading false information - charges that carry the death sentence.

Apparently, there could be a reprieve when a final verdict (after review) is pronounced on January 29, 2013.

Good luck carrying out the sentence, since none of the accused live in Egypt.

Wednesday, November 28, 2012

More grim news from Afghanistan, where refusing someone's marriage proposal can result in an acid attack or gruesome death. A 14-year-old girl in Konduz province is the latest victim: beheaded by two men who have since been arrested.

Local police officer Nizamuddin Hakimi told RFE/RL that the girl's body was found late on November 27 in the province’s Imam Sahib District.

Hakimi said that a preliminary investigation revealed that the two suspects had asked the girl's parents if one of them could marry her.

Both the girl and her parents reportedly rejected the proposal.

Hakimi gave no further details regarding the men's possible connection to the killing.

It's Ashura (aka Ashoura) time, when Shiite Muslims commemorate the martyrdom of Prophet Mohammed's grandson, Imam Hussein, through self-flagellation by using big sharp knives, and literally making a bloody mess of themselves. I'm sure you've seen those photos of men holding their young kids with blood dripping down both their heads. Not a pretty sight.

Apparently, this is one of the many things that turn off their Muslim Sunni brothers, and understandably so; and this antipathy between them, and their obvious inability to respect each other in spite of their differing beliefs, is the root of the escalating sectarian violence. They're not satisfied with telling each other "we think you suck, but you have a right to your own beliefs, as bizarre as they might be", no they have to instigate fights, and better yet blow each other up. The Taliban were foiled in this plot, but Afghan police were not so lucky last year when around 60 were killed.

However, one university student at Kabul University was killed this year, and eight wounded, after fighting broke out Saturday, on campus.

The clash began Saturday evening as Sunni Muslim students tried to prevent their Shiite counterparts from observing Ashura inside a dormitory mosque. The holiday commemorates the martyrdom of Hussein, a grandson of the Prophet Muhammad and a revered figure in Shiite Islam. The confrontation escalated during the night, with students throwing stones at one another. University officials eventually sent in the police to break up the melee.

Some police officers said that as many as three people might have been killed, but only one death was confirmed as of Saturday night. University officials evacuated the school and canceled classes for the next 10 days.

I suppose I might not want my mosque bloodied up either, but couldn't they just have said, clean it up, or else? And these are educated university students, not ignorant poppy farmers out in the boonies.

I've said this before, but if Muslims can't even get along with each other, how on earth do we expect them to get along with people of other faiths.

Tuesday, November 27, 2012

Sandra Fluke, poster child for the "gimme free stuff because the government owes me that" mentality, has just been nominated for Time Magazine's "Person of the Year 2012".

There are 40 nominees, which Time will ultimately choose, but you too can have your say (vote before December 12.) Granted, the 'chosen' few aren't necessarily picked for their positive qualities- there are plenty of dubious ones listed, including Bashar al-Assad and Barack Obama, who has been nominated, again! Time does clarify that when voting (that is, if you choose to play along) you should:

Cast your vote for the person you think most influenced the news this year for better or worse.

31-year-old Sandra Fluke, that self-serving Georgetown law student graduate, was the catalyst for the "war on women" mantra that the Democratic party glommed onto in order to appeal to all the single, child-bearing females in the country (and their champions) who feel the government should provide free birth control. Ironically, they also happen to be the ones who say the government should not interfere with their bodies. But it worked, since single women were instrumental in getting Obama four more years in the White House.

North Korea's Pillsbury Doughboy-faced Kim Jong Un the sexiest man alive? I think not. But that's what was posted on The Onion, and laughably picked up by China's People's Daily Online, where it published a 55 page (no less) slide show of the hunky Jong Un, and quoted The Onion:

"With his devastatingly handsome, round face, his boyish charm, and his strong, sturdy frame, this Pyongyang-bred heartthrob is every woman's dream come true. Blessed with an air of power that masks an unmistakable cute, cuddly side, Kim made this newspaper's editorial board swoon with his impeccable fashion sense, chic short hairstyle, and, of course, that famous smile," it said.

"He has that rare ability to somehow be completely adorable and completely macho at the same time," said Marissa Blake-Zweiber, editor of The Onion Style and Entertainment.

So English isn't their first language, and it's a foreign news outlet, and it's not the first foreign news media to be gullible enough to fall for an Onion piece. Iran was duped twice- that we know of- buying into Facebook being a CIA front, and actually plagiarizing The Onion's piece on rural whites preferring Mahmoud Ahmadinejad over Barack Obama. Okay, so I had a friend who actually fell for the latter, as well, although he claims he knew it was a joke. But these stories are ludicrous at best. Anyone with any sense would wonder about the legitimacy of such a ridiculous story and poke around the web or the website itself. That's the first thing I do when I find something questionably stupid or unbelievable- like Kim Jong Un, of all people, being voted the sexiest man alive.

I'm not sure how long People's Daily will keep it up when they find out they were fooled, big time, but you can see a screen capture of the headline on HuffpoUK.

As a side note, I picked my favorite photo of the lot. The one with a smiling Jong Un and a family of mostly scared looking, unhappy people.

Monday, November 26, 2012

I like actor Jamie Foxx. I thought he was incredibly funny during his stint on "In Living Color", and his portrayal of Ray Charles in "Ray" well deserved the Oscar, but dang, the man's an idiot.

At the Soul train Awards on Sunday in Las Vegas the man actually said:

"It's like church over here. It's like church in here. First of all, give an honor to God and our lord and savior Barack Obama. Barack Obama."

"Our Lord and Savior"? Wow. He's lucky we live in a country where people are free to say stupid things, and blasphemy isn't met with a death sentence.

Interesting though, if you look closely, there wasn't as much enthusiasm on the part of the audience as one might expect, then again it was a pretty stupid thing to say.

Yes, I know he was probably joking, but still.... dumb. However, I'm sure there are plenty who do look at Obama as a Lord and Savior, and Santa Claus, to boot. And Obama's attitude, in many ways, fosters that adoration.

Here's a good one. An opinion piece by Xavier Lerma on Pravda, skewering Barack Obama for his "Soviet mistake", and claiming he was re-elected by a bunch of "illiterate voters". I'm not sure about illiterate, but certainly stupid.

This does not bode well for our country.

Putin in 2009 outlined his strategy for economic success. Alas, poor Obama did the opposite but nevertheless was re-elected. Bye, bye Miss American Pie. The Communists have won in America with Obama but failed miserably in Russia with Zyuganov who only received 17% of the vote. Vladimir Putin was re-elected as President keeping the NWO order out of Russia while America continues to repeat the Soviet mistake.

After Obama was elected in his first term as president the then Prime Minister of Russia, Vladimir Putin gave a speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland in January of 2009. Ignored by the West as usual, Putin gave insightful and helpful advice to help the world economy and saying the world should avoid the Soviet mistake.

Recently, Obama has been re-elected for a 2nd term by an illiterate society and he is ready to continue his lies of less taxes while he raises them. He gives speeches of peace and love in the world while he promotes wars as he did in Egypt, Libya and Syria. He plans his next war is with Iran as he fires or demotes his generals who get in the way.

Putin said regarding the military,

"...instead of solving the problem, militarization pushes it to a deeper level. It draws away from the economy immense financial and material resources, which could have been used much more efficiently elsewhere."

Well, any normal individual understands that as true but liberalism is a psychosis . O'bomber even keeps the war going along the Mexican border with projects like "fast and furious" and there is still no sign of ending it. He is a Communist without question promoting the Communist Manifesto without calling it so. How shrewd he is in America. His cult of personality mesmerizes those who cannot go beyond their ignorance. They will continue to follow him like those fools who still praise Lenin and Stalin in Russia. Obama's fools and Stalin's fools share the same drink of illusion.

Lerma even goes so far as to call Vladimir Putin, of all people, a conservative along the lines of Ronald Reagan, who now advocates less taxation and smaller government. In that same speech Putin said:

"...we are reducing taxes on production, investing money in the economy. We are optimizing state expenses.

Lerma says:

President Vladimir Putin could never have imagined anyone so ignorant or so willing to destroy their people like Obama much less seeing millions vote for someone like Obama. They read history in America don't they? Alas, the schools in the U.S. were conquered by the Communists long ago and history was revised thus paving the way for their Communist presidents. Obama has bailed out those businesses that voted for him and increased the debt to over 16 trillion with an ever increasing unemployment rate especially among blacks and other minorities. All the while promoting his agenda.

"We must seek support in the moral values that have ensured the progress of our civilization. Honesty and hard work, responsibility and faith in our strength are bound to bring us success."- Vladimir Putin

Most people who favor the Palestinians will claim that it's only the Palestinians who are suffering, after all those thousands of rockets Hamas fires into Israel don't do much damage, after all. Wrong. However, this misperception colors how people view Israel and its people, so the Israelis are trying to change that negative image by inviting journalists and high profile bloggers to visit and see for themselves that Israel isn't some demon country bullying its poor neighbour.

The Israeli Embassy in Beijing and the Public Diplomacy and Diaspora Affairs Ministry recently invited a group of Chinese bloggers and Hispanic/American journalists to tour the country which seemed to pay off: while visiting the Western Wall in Jerusalem the journalists experienced what Israelis are consistently subjected to: the sound of sirens. The fact that Gaza rockets don't do as much harm as intended is a blessing, but certainly not the goal of Hamas. Hamas would like to obliterate Israel with each one of those rockets, so you have to admire a people that can carry on with their lives amidst a barrage of potentially fatal rocket attacks. This is what these journalists and bloggers experienced, and were then able to relay to their readers.

David M. Weinberg from Israel Hayom discusses how both these groups were affected by what they saw in Israel:

The Hispanic journalists’ visit, which had been planned well before Operation Pillar of Defense and took place on schedule, is one of the Public Diplomacy and Diaspora Affairs Minister Yuli Edelstein’s many projects. At the same time, a group of Chinese bloggers visiting Israel and seeing its tourist attractions also got a taste of last week’s terror. The ministry’s strategy is to try to reach large, new and influential audiences such as Chinese and Hispanic — who, until recently, few had tried to reach, at least as far as the Middle East conflict goes. [Snip]

“The best public relations for the State of Israel is a look at life in Israel as it is,” says Edelstein. “In times like these, since there is not much awareness of Israel beyond the conflict and what is shown in the world media, we are making an effort to bring media people to Israel — bloggers and public-opinion leaders who will see the situation with their own eyes. We hope to reach their myriads of listeners, viewers and readers, whether they’re millions of followers in China or hundreds of thousands of Americans of Latino extraction who listen to local television and radio every day.”

“When the siren sounded, people started crying and their children asked them why,” said Maria Antonieta Collins, a Mexican-born journalist who lives in Miami and writes for the Spanish-language media outlet Univision. Collins says she quickly realized that “the situation in Israel is absurd and the people here are suffering. After the one-time experience that we had at the Western Wall, I can’t imagine how it’s possible to live in a city that gets hit by thousands of rockets. I can’t imagine what it would be like if it happened on the border between Tijuana and San Diego. Now I admire the people of Israel, who keep on living and coping with this situation.”

Another Hispanic journalist, Fernando Espuela in three YouTube videos said:

“Alongside the fear of terrorism, it’s a fascinating trip and a profound experience,” he says. “I’ve been following what goes on in Israel through the media and I had general knowledge. But this visit gave me the chance to have deep talks with many people, including at the top levels of the administration — influential people — and also with the general public. I learned that the situation was much more complex than I’d thought.” What about hearing the air-raid siren go off at the Western Wall? “I got a taste of what it’s like to live in a situation of uncertainty and fear. Because of that, I have a lot more appreciation, respect and understanding for the residents of Israel’s south. I got a chance to share that experience, and the feelings that went with it, with a lot of people in the U.S.”

As for the Chinese bloggers:

One of the blogs belongs to journalist Tang Shizeng of Beijing, who writes for the news agencies in China. Here is an excerpt from a post of his from this past week: “Hamas rockets continue to attack Israeli civilians, resulting in casualties. In response, the Israeli government has mobilized 75,000 army reservists, the largest call-up since the Gulf War." Shizeng, 51, a highly experienced senior journalist in China, gave explanations about the Israeli army and reserve duty. He also shared photographs of Israel Defense Forces soldiers, including the well-known photograph by David Rubinger of paratroopers at the Western Wall in June 1967, toward the end of the Six-Day War.

Saturday, November 24, 2012

There have been a slew of companies that have threatened or will definitely be slashing employee hours because of Obamacare, including many restaurants from Darden Restaurants (Olive Garden, Red Lobster and Longhorn Steakhouse) to Papa John's Pizza, and Denny's, among others. But it's not just waiters and waitresses that will suffer the consequences, other corporations are following suit, and now the education industry is going to be effected, as well.

Adjunct professors, part-time instructors, and staff (all 400 of them!) at Community College of Allegheny County (CCAC) in Pennsylvania will see their hours cut so as to avoid Obamacare. As of December 31, part-timers will have their weekly hours cut to 25, saving the college $6 million.

"It's kind of a double whammy for us because we are facing a legal requirement [under the new law] to get health care and if the college is reducing our hours, we don't have the money to pay for it," said adjunct biology professor Adam Davis.

"While it is of course the college’s preference to provide coverage to these positions, there simply are not funds available to do so," said CCAC spokesperson David Hoovler. "Several years of cuts or largely flat funding from our government supporters have led to significant cost reductions by CCAC, leaving little room to trim the college’s budget further."

Do you think they might be a tad annoyed with themselves for voting for Barack Obama, who won the Pennsylvania vote handily? They should be, because it's going to happen to a lot more companies across the nation when Obamacare becomes a reality in 2013. There will be thousands of people either unemployed or underemployed because companies will no longer be able to afford keeping them.

"They may be complying with the letter of the law, but the letter of law and the spirit of the law are two different things," said Mr. Cech. "If they are doing it at CCAC, it can't be long before they do it other places."

Remember 63-year-old transsexual, wife-killer Michelle (Robert) Kosilek who won his fight to get the taxpayers to cover the cost of his gender reassignment surgery? Now Mich, who lives in an all-male prison in Massachusetts, wants electrolysis, because he/she's just too hairy for his/her liking. Kosilek actually did have a few treatments (courtesy of the taxpayers) back in 2008 to remove excess hair from his chest and face, but prison officials believed he could use other methods (just like most women do) to remove the extra growth.

Apparently, her lawyers claim she needs the electrolysis to complete her as a woman. Considering she's living in an all-male prison, where no-one but her fellow inmates and prison guards see her, why the heck does she think she needs expensive hair removal treatments? Criminals, particularly murderers do not deserve special dispensation for anything. He should have thought about that before he practically severed his wife's head off with a wire hanger.

The federal judge, Mark L. wolf, who gave the go ahead for the sex change surgery seems to think it was medically necessary, and therefore a "prolonged violation" of Kosilek's constitutional right against 'cruel and unusual punishment'. Shouldn't he be punished for snuffing out his wife's life? The judge said:

"It has long been well-established that it is cruel for prison officials to permit an inmate to suffer unnecessarily from a serious medical need," the judge wrote in his 128-page decision.

He called it "unusual" to treat a prisoner with gender identity disorder differently "than the numerous inmates suffering from more familiar forms of mental illness."

The Department of Corrections is appealing the judge's initial surgery judgment, no comment on the electrolysis.

What a waste of money. The $30,000 to $80,000 the surgery will cost could feed lots of hungry people in New Bedford, Massachusetts.

An Investor's Business Daily (IBD) editorial gives a scathing review of Barack Obama's quick Southeast Asian gaffe-ridden jaunt. Basically, it accomplished nothing more than a "get-out-of-town photo-op all about himself as a means of avoiding pressing problems back home" opportunity.

And had it been a Republican president, or anyone other than the King of Fools- given all the gaffes, as reported by IBD- they would have been skewered by the American media clowns.

It was obvious enough from the rubelike gaffes that the president hasn't been particularly interested or attentive to the affairs of Thailand, Burma or Cambodia as he made his first trip since his re-election. It was pretty much all style over substance.

In his tour of Burma, billed as an historic first visit since Burma's 2007 move to democracy, it was clear he was in way over his head, even on small things. Obama repeatedly referred to the country's Nobel Peace Prize-winning leader Aung San Suu Kyi as Aung Yan Suu Kyi, an astonishing error given her global fame.

But he also undermined his supposed democracy mission, first by telling the Burmese leaders that he too wished he could govern without opposition, calling into question whether he himself believed in the representative government he was advocating.

It didn't help that he ignored the real heroes who helped push Burma toward a more open system — President and Mrs. Bush, as well as Rep. Dana Rohrabacher, Sens. John McCain and Mitch McConnell, seeming to take credit for it himself.

And ironically, the Southeast Asians don't seem to be as enamored of Obama as the Europeans. No superstar status there for Barry.

No substance, no influence. Nothing underlined this quite like the lack of crowds greeting Obama in all three nations. When a leader's visit is cause for hope and a catalyst for change — think Pope John Paul II's 1978 Poland visit — crowds turn out. Obama, supposedly representing the greatest nation on earth, couldn't draw so much as an Occupy-sized crowd. Nor did he draw respect.

On his trip to Cambodia, a country he claimed didn't deserve a visit due to its strongman government, first lady Bun Rany greeted Obama with a traditional "sampeah" pressed-hands greeting reserved for servants, a little dig that was probably lost on him but not to Asians.

Ooops.

For the whole editorial and the photo of Bun Rany "sampeah", click here.

Friday, November 23, 2012

Sexual harassment is rampant in Middle Eastern culture. In Egypt women deal with it on a daily basis, in spite of the fact most women there now wear the Islamic veil. Perhaps much of that has to do with women being considered objects in those male-dominated, chauvinistic societies. Yes, it exists in the West but nowhere to the extent it does over there. In the U.S. it can occur in the workplace- I have worked on enough industrial films dealing with that subject to know it does happen- but you don't usually encounter harassment on the street.

So some female students at the University of Jordan Khleif al-Tawarneh, under the supervision of their Feminist Theory professor Rula Quawas produced a video dealing with the subject of sexual harassment on university campuses. The pretty innocuous video posted on Youtube, and the subsequent furor it created, led to the firing of Quawas, the much loved dean of the School of Foreign Languages.

Critics accused the film makers of “promoting vice and stripping the society of its values.”

Not surprising that they would fry the messenger, since the males obviously don't consider their actions to be offensive.

President Ikhleif Tarawneh said she was fired because the video tarnished the reputation of the university, others believe it was "an act of vengeance."

Dismissal of the Feminist Theory’s professor angered activists, journalists, writers, and students. Several campaigns were launched to express solidarity with her and in which she was praised for making a film that raises awareness about sexual harassment.

Tawarneh claims it had nothing to do with the video, but rather an administrative prerogative. Others disagree:

But the Committee for Academic Freedoms at the University of Middle East Studies in Jordan rejected Tawarneh’s claims and said there were no documents proving Qawas’s negligence or weak performance, the decision could not have been administrative. The timing showed that the film was the reason for her dismissal, the committee added.

Rather than deal with what is evidently a chronic problem on his campus, Tawarneh fired the one person inspiring others to fight it. This will only encourage the bad boys to continue their harassment. Typical.

Here's an interesting, forgotten fact about the Republican Party and Black History.

On this day in history, November 20, 1921, Republican President Warren Harding called for an emergency session of congress to deal with the rampant lynchings of blacks, in the south, and to vote on the Dyer Anti-Lynching Bill.

During that same time the NAACP, which worked closely with Republican Congressman Leonidas Dyer and President Harding, ran full-page ads in the New York Times and seven other major daily newspapers.

The Dyer Anti-Lynching Bill passed the House, in 1922, but was defeated in the Senate by Senate Democrats.

Thursday, November 22, 2012

Another attack on Christians in the predominately Muslim northern part of Nigeria. 18 dead, so far, including three children.

Part of the violence is being blamed on the radical Muslim sect Boko Haram, but it was just ordinary Muslim villagers who attacked their Christian neighbours (30 miles from Kano) in response to a trader who allegedly insulted their Prophet Mohammed. According to the police there were no deaths, although one witness, Sadiq Ahmed, claims there were four dead bodies in front of shops owned by Christians, torched shops and a church.

Officials believe Boko Haram is responsible for three separate attacks that have occurred this week in Maiduguri, northeast Nigeria. There has been no official count, and the 18 dead were reported by witnesses, which means there could be many more. The police might be reluctant to report more deaths in case it prompts retaliatory action by Christians.

Earlier this week, a Christian vigilante group in central Nigeria killed a Muslim resident after he defied an illegal checkpoint the group had put up to protect their church from a Boko Haram attack, even though the sect had not previously struck in that area. The killing sparked riots that left 10 people dead.

Though the Muslims and Christians lived in peace for many years in that country, the increasing trend towards radical Islam has changed that dynamic, and there's nothing the government can do to stop the escalating violence.

President Goodluck Jonathan, whose government has responded to the crisis by sending more troops to the most affected areas, recently said on state-run television that Boko Haram remained a "faceless" group and that there was nobody for the government to meet with to seek peace.

Not that Boko Haram or any of the other radical Islamists in African countries (or elsewhere) are interested in peace.

It's that time of year- the time to give thanks for what we have, and to be ever so grateful for what we don't have. In spite of all our troubles, we still live in a democracy, for now. Some of our freedoms are being eroded and restricted by the intolerant, p.c. crowd, but at least we are still free, for now.

I am thankful that although I might not like who our leaders are, I can criticize them to my hearts content without the fear of being jailed or killed, for now.

I am thankful that every American has the opportunity to get an education, women in some countries are not so fortunate.

I am thankful that we can still worship freely in whatever faith we choose, or not at all.

I am thankful that we don't have to deal with daily rocket fire raining down on our heads from neighbours who want us dead, and who have no intention of sticking to a cease-fire.

I am thankful, as a woman, to be living in a land where I am not forced to stay at home or cover myself up in order to head outdoors, and then only in the company of a male relative.

I am thankful and grateful for our military troops abroad and stateside.

Happy Thanksgiving to you all! Enjoy your turkey, ham or your Tofurkey if you happen to be a veggie.

Wednesday, November 21, 2012

CBN in Paris reports on a march against Islamic fascism and Shariah law on November 12. Did anyone hear about this? No, because the leftist French media did not bother to report on this because it was considered racist.

I know that most in the West would have no problem with Muslims if they would just integrate, but a good majority don't seem very interested in doing that. As radical Muslims push more for their agenda to become accepted in Western countries (Shariah law, for one), Westerners are going to push back. It's inevitable. Unfortunately, it could get very ugly.

What is Anjem Choudary still doing in England? Yes, I know he was born there, but why is he allowed to freely roam the streets of London preaching hate and promulgating Shariah for England? His Islam4UK website was eventually banned (although he does have his own website now), and there have been various Shariah4 sites that popped up thereafter, including Shariah4Holland.com, Shariah4Pakistan.com, Shariah4Belgium.com and Shariah4America.com, though it seems the only two still alive and running are the Pakistan and Holland ones.

Now Choudary and Shariah4Pakistan have targeted Malala Yousafzai, the young Pakistani education activist teen who was shot in the head by the Taliban who then vowed to finish the job if she survived. Which she has. Choudary is about to issue a fatwa against Malala for apostasy. It's scheduled to be announced at the Red Mosque in Islamabad, Pakistan, at an event on November 30. As we all know, the sentence for apostasy in Islam is death. Though Choudary claims he is not calling for her death, he might as well have, since the Taliban have already promised as much.

He told The Daily Star: "If someone apostatises like this woman did by allying with the Americans and saying her favourite person is (Barack) Obama and that she does not want the Sharia or hijab and wants to live under a secular state, she has put herself in a very precarious situation.

“It is no surprise what happened to her in Pakistan. Malala is mature Islamically, she is not immature, she has reached that period we say is adulthood.”

Featuring a video address from al-Muhajiroun's co-founder Omar Bakri, it is titled: "Declaration of Fatwa on Malala Yousafzai."

Bakri told the paper: "The only solution is the implementation of the Sharia. She (Malala) should face justice in an Islamic court.

“We are going to renew the Fatwa against the man-made law and systems in Pakistan – this is why women like this young girl are rejecting Islam. The system is not being implemented properly.”

Of course, Choudary is saying that it wasn't simply her fight for education rights for girls that caused her to be a Taliban target, it was the fact that she was a spy for the U.S. Yes, they actually believe that. According to Shariah4Pakistan:

It has also been reported that the Taliban had evidence of espionage by Malala and so targeted her as a tactical military operation,

“For this espionage, infidels gave her awards and rewards. And Islam orders killing of those who are spying for enemies,” the Taliban said in a statement.

“She used to propagate against mujahideen (holy warriors) to defame (the) Taliban. The Quran says that people propagating against Islam and Islamic forces would be killed.

“We targeted her because she would speak against the Taliban while sitting with shameless strangers and idealised the biggest enemy of Islam, Barack Obama.”

They also said,

“We did not attack her for raising voice for education. We targeted her for opposing mujahideen and their war,” said the Taliban.

So, it's totally cool to kill someone because they don't agree with your extremist violent ways. And, of course, she must be a spy since she loves Obama. Idiots that they are, they fail to realize that Obama is one of the most Muslim-friendly presidents they could ever get. Oh, and it's not just Malala they're condemning for apostasy, Choudary wants to make it perfectly clear that it's the whole darn Pakistani leadership. That's why they've created Shariah4Pakistan, because they want the glory days of Islamic repression under Shariah to return to the fatherland.

Recovering at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham, England, Malala has many trying to get her nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize.

Tuesday, November 20, 2012

Proud (and happy) atheist Pat Condell socks it to the leftist tools who support Hamas and Palestine in this video he taped last year. As always, he does not hold back his contempt for the idiots who have no clue what actually is going on over there.

After suffering through a civil war that has been ongoing since the uprising in March, 2011 the Syrians won't have much to look forward to, when it eventually ends, if some of the rebel groups get their way.

Unfortunately, foreign fighters and Islamists have taken advantage of the armed conflict in that country and now want to establish an Islamic state in once-secular Syria. That is, of course, when President Bashar al-Assad is finally killed or exiled.

On November 11 in Qatar, the Syrian opposition created the National Coalition, but the rebel groups have flat out rejected it.

"We, the fighting squads of Aleppo city and province, unanimously reject the conspiratorial project called the National Coalition and announce our consensus to establish an Islamic state" in Syria, a spokesman announced in the video.

"We reject any external coalitions or councils imposed on us at home from any party whatsoever," he said.

The unidentified speaker sat at the head of a long conference table with at least 30 other men and a black Islamist flag on the wall behind him.

He listed 14 armed groups as signatories to the statement, including Ahrar al-Sham and Liwa al-Tawhid.

After the statement, another man held up a copy of the Koran, saying forcefully to the camera that it should be "your constitution."

"God is greatest," the group said in unison.

Not everyone, however, wants that for Syria.

Abdel Jabbar al-Okaidi, the head of the main rebel Free Syrian Army (FSA) in the embattled northern city of Aleppo, said that the statement did not represent the opinion of all rebel groups in the province.

"These groups represent a number of military factions on the ground and reflect their position, but not all military forces in Aleppo agree with this," the defected former colonel said by phone.

"The military council has announced its support for the National Coalition and is collaborating with them," Okaidi added.

It's ironic that the Syrian people initially fighting for their freedom will eventually have it replaced by something even darker, if the Islamists indeed gain power.

Monday, November 19, 2012

The Daily Caller posted this video of Russian dissident and Vladimir Putin critic, Pavel Stroilov, discussing his take on Barack Obama's private chat with Dmitry Medvedev discussing missile defense while attending a summit in Korea this past March. That same chat that neither realized had been caught on audiotape when Obama told Dmitry to give him space, since he would have more "flexibility" once he was re-elected.

London-based Stroilov claims there are many who have been very disappointed" with Obama's foreign policy the past four years and is not thrilled with what another four might bring. He criticizes Obama for buckling to the worst dictators, and letting down all the democracies and allies of the U.S. and the West.

Regarding his interpretation of the hot mic incident, he says, speaking for Obama:

“This means, ‘I can’t do it now, because American voters do not want it. But I don’t care what American voters want, I care what my friend Vladimir wants. I will do it. Just give me some time to fool the American voters, to pretend I am tougher than I really am, and then we will fix it, don’t worry."

“I mean, I can’t read it in any other way. I am sorry if that sounds disrespectful towards your president, but that’s what it means in English.”

Dinesh D'Souza, whose documentary film "2016: Obama's America" painted a dire portrait of what another four years with Barack Obama would look like, has written an interesting post election opinion piece on Obama: "Can Obama Change?"

Listening to President Obama speak on election night, I thought of the moment in "The Lion King" when Scar took over Pride Rock. My sentiment for America was perfectly captured by the accompanying song, “Be Prepared.”

Be prepared, America, for another $5 trillion dollars in debt. That means America would be over $20 trillion in debt, one half of it added by one man, Barack Obama.
Be prepared for higher taxes on those who are pulling the wagon, and more benefits for those who are sitting in the wagon.

Be prepared for further restrictions on hydraulic fracturing and oil drilling in America, even as President Obama promotes and subsidizes oil drilling in developing nations.
Be prepared for transfers of wealth away from America and to the rest of the world.
This is what we as a country have voted for.

Be prepared, also, for the further diminution of American power and influence in the world. This involves our allies falling, one by one, in the Middle East, while the radical Muslims consolidate their power in Iran, Egypt and elsewhere.

Ultimately just as Reagan was largely responsible for the fall of the Soviet Union, President Obama may be credited by history for helping to restore Islam as a global power, which it has not been for three centuries. By 2016 America could cease to be the world’s sole superpower, and have become rather a weak giant, a kind of second Canada. This, too, we have risked by giving President Obama a second term.

And although he doesn't hold out much hope for that change, he does ask what if?

"[Snip] Obama has been raised on high by the American people, who are looking to him to lead them not down the hill but onward and upward, to greater and higher things.

How incredible it would be if Obama responded to this great trust by proving himself worthy of it. That would truly make him one of America’s great presidents. He would even, in this way, be helping the world, because a strong, thriving America is good for the security and prosperity of the world. Maybe this very smart man can rise above his past and figure that out.

It's an interesting read, though I'm not sure any of us are about to hold our breath. Once again, I hope to be proved wrong.

For more incompetence or willful negligence in Florida: St Lucie County Canvassing Board missed the noon deadline for an Allen West recount. Legal Insurrection has the lowdown on the whole timeline.

But the West camp is still not giving up. The left are skewering West for pursuing the issue, but we all know that had it been the reverse, Murphy would be doing the same thing and no-one would be criticizing.

Great news for Congressman Allen West, though I'm sure Democrat Patrick Murphy and Florida liberals will be livid!

After being told there would be no recount by Circuit Court Judge Dan Vaughn for Florida's disputed District 18 early votes, a canvassing board voted 2-1 to start the process yesterday on the 37,379 early voting ballots that some have said were possibly double counted and/or ignored.

Whether it was voter fraud or gross incompetence (which seems the more likely scenario) West should not have had to press for a recount given the fact that there were grave doubts. Even the media admitted as much- see video below.

Even if West doesn't win after all this, at least it will put the doubts to rest. It just seems odd that West was announced the winner and then within a short period of time he suddenly lost by fewer than 2,000 votes.

"We are pleased the Canvassing Board has done the right thing for the voters of St Lucie County by agreeing to a retabulation of early votes," said West in a press release. "All we have been fighting for since the very beginning is to ensure the citizens of this county have their votes accurately and fairly counted."

By early Saturday morning, Murphy's legal team sought an injunction in circuit court to stop the recount.

Shortly before 10 a.m. Murphy lawyer Liz Powers told the canvassing board of the action but county attorneys had not received word. The recount began shortly after 10 a.m.

West fired back at Murphy, issuing a statement:

"In a last-ditch effort to suppress the vote, Murphy's lawyers submitted sloppy and incomplete papers to the Court this morning to try to strong-arm the judge into preventing today's retabulation already underway. The Murphy team's motion is procedurally and substantively lacking. With every action attempted, Murphy demonstrates a complete lace of respect and utter disregard for the voters of St. Lucie County.

"Murphy's efforts bring to mind the dark times in our nation's history when politicians tried to manipulate the law to suppress the votes, and we are appalled by Murphy's apparent contempt for the voting rights of citizens to have their ballots accurately and fairly tabulated."

I'm glad they made the right decision. It will be interesting to see who actually won, that is, if there are no shenanigans during the recount. I hope there are are enough observers to make sure this time that things are done right.

Saturday, November 17, 2012

Some credit a Prague, Czech Republic newspaper Prager Zeitungon for the following quote, however I'm not sure if it's the actual source.

Apparently written right after Barack Obama was elected by a larger majority of fools for his first four years, whoever wrote this made a very astute assessment about the electorate who voted for him. It's just as apropos today as it was back in 2009.

“The danger to America is not Barack Obama, but a citizenry capable of entrusting a man like him with the Presidency. It will be far easier to limit and undo the follies of an Obama presidency than to restore the necessary common sense and good judgment to a depraved electorate willing to have such a man for their president. The problem is much deeper and far more serious than Mr. Obama, who is a mere symptom of what ails America. Blaming the prince of the fools should not blind anyone to the vast confederacy of fools that made him their prince. The Republic can survive a Barack Obama, who is, after all, merely a fool. It is less likely to survive a multitude of fools, such as those who made him their president.”

They love their Blasphemy Laws in Pakistan, even though most of the accusations are simply a way of getting back at someone you have a grudge against. You'd think they'd learn after they discovered that the cleric who accused a young 14-year-old Christian girl, Rimsha Masih, of burning the pages of a Quran, was actually the one who framed her by planting evidence. But they've now fined and sentenced to 10 years in prison, plus death, 25-year-old Hazrat Ali Shah who was accused by fellow villagers of blaspheming Mohammed after an argument in early 2011.

According to prosecutors, Hazrat Ali Shah uttered something blasphemous against the Holy Prophet (pbuh) in March 2011 in his village of Barenis, which was testified by many villagers.Police registered a case under Sections 295 –(a), (b) and (c) of the Pakistan Penal Code.The convicted man allegedly stood on the roof of his house and spoke loudly and inappropriately against the Prophet (pbuh) about one and a half year ago, creating a tense situation in the village, after which police arrested him and lodged a case.

A Christian woman, Aasia Bibi (aka Aasia Noreen), is also on death row after she too was accused of blasphemy in 2010. She's still waiting on appeals.

Iran is taking giant steps backwards when it comes to women's rights. Not that women have had much since the Iranian Islamic Revolution in 1979 relegated them to third class citizens. Granted, up until recently they haven't had it as bad as some of their Muslim sisters in places like Saudi Arabia or hell holes like Afghanistan and Yemen- where women are non-entity's completely covered up and separated from the men folk- but they're being pushed in that direction.

Iran recently banned women from 80 university courses, and is now trying to control their rights to travel outside of the country without the approval of a male family member. A law that is being considered by the 290-seat Majlis will require single women under 40 to get permission to travel abroad from either their father or male guardian. Currently, only single women (and men) under the age of 18 need permission from their fathers to obtain a passport, while married women must get permission from their husbands. But that's about to change if the lawmakers get their way.

Since women were such a major part in pro-democracy, Green Movement a few years back, it seems the government is doing what it can to diminish the power of women by attempting to control and place further restrictions on their lives.

"According to our laws, if a 9-year-old girl commits a criminal offense, she will be tried and punished exactly as a 40-year-old person would," Ebadi says. "But if she wants to leave the country she is required, until the age of 40, to get permission from her father [for a passport]. If her father is deceased, she has to get permission from a judge."

Girls may be legally married as early as 13, and some lawmakers argue the age may, under Islamic interpretation, drop as low as 9. All women require permission from a male guardian to marry, regardless of their age.

Under Iranian law, women are also strictly compromised in terms of rights to compensation and giving legal testimony.

They are also bound by a strictly observed Islamic dress and conduct code, which forbids casual contact with the opposite sex and ordains that a woman must keep her hair and body covered in public.

Such laws are often used as a pretext to crack down on political opponents.

There are rights activists who are trying to do their part to gain more freedom for women, but they often wind up in jail. But there have been a few small wins.

One campaign claims to have reduced the number of women facing death by stoning for convictions of prostitution or adultery.

Another, the 1 Million Signatures campaign backed by Ebadi, has helped call attention to the stark legal discrimination against women in Iranian laws.

Ebadi, who now works in London after fleeing Iran amid rising harassment, says the rights movement has caused discomfort among Tehran's ruling establishment.

If the people don't somehow manage to oust the ruling Mullahs, it's only going to get worse for women there.

Friday, November 16, 2012

17 wedding guests, the majority women and children, were killed in one fell swoop as they drove their minibus to a party in a village in western Afghanistan. The bus was ripped apart by a roadside bomb planted by the Taliban. Aimed at killing NATO troops, the militants seem to have no problem with the fact that those roadside bombs also manage to kill innocent civilians. What the heck, they have no respect for women or children anyway, so no loss there.

According to police chief Aqa Noor Kintoz, four men, one child and nine women were also wounded.

And the Afghans and the West really think the Taliban are willing to talk? The amount of civilian casualties during the first half of this year is outrageous.

In the first six months of 2012, a total of 1,145 Afghan civilians were killed and around 2,000 were wounded, mostly by roadside bombs, according to United Nations figures.

Women and children accounted for about 30 percent of this year’s casualties.

Earlier this week a mother and her newborn baby were among six family members killed in a roadside bombing in eastern Afghanistan.

The victims were heading home from the hospital after the mother had given birth when the bomb planted by Taliban insurgents tore through their vehicle in eastern Khost province.

And little more than a week ago, a roadside bomb killed 10 civilians, including women and a child, heading for a wedding party in southern Afghanistan.

If they had more respect for human life, there might be some hope, but that's obviously not the case.

It's the end of an era. Hostess and makers of everything from Wonder Bread to Twinkies and Ding Dongs is dead, thanks- in part- to a Union that refused to make concessions with a company that was failing during a bad economy. Hostess corporate warned its striking employees, members of the Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers and Grain Millers International Union (BCTGM), that if they did not return to work the company would be forced to fold, and that's exactly what happened. Now 18,500 people will be out of jobs and lining up for unemployment.

Hostess, which had already filed for bankruptcy twice- including this past January- was asking the following from its workers:

The new contract cut salaries across the company by 8% in the first year of the five-year agreement. Salaries were then scheduled to bump up 3% in the next three years and 1% in the final year.

Hostess also reduced its pension obligations and its contribution to the employees' health care plan. In exchange, the company offered concessions, including a 25% equity stake for workers and the inclusion of two union representatives on an eight-member board of directors.

Not so bad when the unemployment numbers are so high. Now, instead of an 8% decrease in salary, they received 100% decrease, along with no prospects for work and a loss of their pension and healthcare. Way to go. Did they really think that a company already in its death throes was bluffing? Ironically, the Teamsters union had accepted a new contract (though by a slim margin) in September and was urging the Bakery union to take a secret vote to determine if the workers wanted to save their jobs. Didn't happen, and I'm sure they're all now wishing they had.

With people choosing to eat in a more health conscious way, Hostess might have eventually folded, but at least those 18,500 people would still have a job for a while longer.

On Nov. 12, Hostess Brands permanently closed three plants as a result of the work stoppage. On Nov. 14, the Company announced it would be forced to liquidate if sufficient employees did not return to work to restore normal operations by 5 p.m., EST p.m., Nov. 15. The Company determined on the night of Nov. 15 that an insufficient number of employees had returned to work to enable the restoration of normal operations.

The BCTGM in September rejected a last, best and final offer from Hostess Brands designed to lower costs so that the Company could attract new financing and emerge from Chapter 11. Hostess Brands then received Court authority on Oct. 3 to unilaterally impose changes to the BCTGM’s collective bargaining agreements.

Hostess Brands is unprofitable under its current cost structure, much of which is determined by union wages and pension costs. The offer to the BCTGM included wage, benefit and work rule concessions but also gave Hostess Brands’ 12 unions a 25 percent ownership stake in the company, representation on its Board of Directors and $100 million in reorganized Hostess Brands’ debt.

“We deeply regret the necessity of today’s decision, but we do not have the financial resources to weather an extended nationwide strike,” said Gregory F. Rayburn, chief executive officer. “Hostess Brands will move promptly to lay off most of its 18,500-member workforce and focus on selling its assets to the highest bidders.”

Hostess will be attempting to sell its brands, but in case they don't, all you junk food addicts might want to stock up before they're all gone.

Hostess®, Drakes® and Dolly Madison®, which make iconic cake products such as Twinkies®, CupCakes, Ding Dongs®, Ho Ho’s®, Sno Balls® and Donettes®. Bread brands to be sold include Wonder®, Nature’s Pride ®, Merita®, Home Pride®, Butternut®, and Beefsteak®, among others.
Other sources: The Republic

Thursday, November 15, 2012

Remember that cute, weepy Colorado kid who was tired of "Bronco Bamma and Mitt Romney", well turns out her parents (should have known) voted for Barack Obama, and they're now trying to capitalize on the fame that first viral video created.

As compared to the original, this one is quite obviously staged. I give her performance in this one a D-.

She will resent (when she is older) the stupidity of her parents' vote.

Here's one for a good laugh. Cornel West hates Barack Obama, but not because West is a Republican, no, it's because Obama isn't progressive enough for him. During a Democracy Now interview with Amy Goodman he said of Obama:

“It’s very sad. I mean, I’m glad there was not a right-wing takeover, but we end up with a Republican, a Rockefeller Republican in blackface, with Barack Obama, so that our struggle with regard to poverty intensifies.”

Obama a Rockefeller Republican in blackface? Ha. If he was, 50% of the American population wouldn't be so darned depressed right now. Ironically, it's the Democratic Party that perpetuates the cycle of poverty by making it more appealing to remain on food stamps and welfare than to go out and get a job, which of course, today, is harder.

He also said:

“I think that it’s morally obscene and spiritually profane to spend $6 billion on an election, $2 billion on a presidential election, and not have any serious discussion. Poverty, trade unions being pushed against the wall dealing with stagnating and declining wages when profits are still up and the 1 percent are doing very well, no talk about drones dropping bombs on innocent people.”

I actually agree with his assessment of election spending. $6 billion is obscene, and we are in dire need of campaign reform.

He actually believes Richard Nixon was more left of Obama on on healthcare and "guaranteed income." And he was also highly critical of black MSNBC personalities for selling out:

I love Brother Mike Dyson … but we’re living in a society where everybody is up for sale. Everything is up for sale. And he and Brother Sharpton and Sister Melissa and others, they have sold their souls for a mess of Obama pottage. And we invite them back to the black prophetic tradition after Obama leaves. But at the moment, they want insider access, and they want to tell those kind of lies. They want to turn their back to poor and working people.

Another distraught person succumbs to his fear, anger and depression over the election of Barack Obama. First we have the Arizona woman who ran over her husband for not voting. Now we hear about the 64-year-old Key West, Florida man who apparently committed suicide over Obama's re-election.

Henry Hamilton, who owned a tanning salon- Tropical Tan- had told his partner Michael Cossey that "if Barack gets re-elected, I'm not going to be around". Hamilton took his own life on November 8th, and was found overdosed on a bottle of Xanax and a bottle of Seroquel (for anxiety and schizophrenia), along with a living will that had "Do not revive! F--K Obama!" written on it. Cossey told police that Hamilton had "been very stressed about his business" and was "very upset about the election results." Although Cossey and Hamilton lived together, Cossey said the last time they talked was on November 6 when they watched the elections together. Police do not suspect foul play, though the whole story is a tad odd, albeit tragic.

According to Dykes' report, Cossey returned to the South Roosevelt Boulevard condo he shared with Hamilton after a late night of playing cards with friends and fell asleep on the couch around 6 a.m.

A friend of Hamilton had been worried about him and had a standing request to police to make welfare checks. Officer Pablo Rodriguez did just that and when he went to the condo, he woke up Cossey, prompting the discovery of Hamilton's body in the bedroom.

Wednesday, November 14, 2012

30-year-old Angelo Carusone, the guy who credits himself for getting Glenn Beck off of Fox News (@StopBeck) by targeting the advertisers, is at it again; but this time he's set his sights on Donald Trump. Why? Because he didn't like Trump's anti-Obama campaign.

Angelo who now has a new Twitter account @GoAngelo- in case you feel inclined to engage- is now trying to get Macy's to drop Trump's line of clothing, accessories and fragrance. On October 24, he started an online petition on SignOn.org (part of MoveOn) urging Macy's to dump Trump:

Macy's: Donald Trump does not reflect the "magic of Macy's." We urge you to sever ties with him. Macy's says it has a strong obligation to be "socially responsible" and that "actions speak louder than words." Indeed. It's time to act.

Carusone said: “Trump’s public conduct had been especially abominable,” criticizing him for his "birther" stance, and his $5 million charity offer to Obama if he shared his college records and passport application with Trump.

As of now there are well over 574,000 signatures on his petition, just shy of his 575,000 goal.

Carusone also said of Trump:

”Trump’s brand is consequence-free bullying. That doesn’t reflect well on Macy’s. People expect more from Macy’s. I’m more interested in what they have to say and less interested in what Donald Trump says.”

And trying to get a company to dump his products isn't a form of bullying? What happened to free speech? Can we not criticize a particular candidate or political party without liberals jumping on the boycott or "dump" bandwagon? If we don't conform to your way of thinking we suffer the consequences? This is so wrong.

“Macy’s marketing and merchandise offerings are not representative of any political position. Many of the individuals associated with products sold at Macy’s—or at any retailer, for that matter—express personal opinions that are not related to the merchandise we sell or to the philosophies of our company.”

Of course, liberals don't see it as a question of free speech. They just want to silence any dissenting voices.

Rabbi Steven Pruzansky writes about "The Decline and Fall of The American Empire" in a post-election commentary on his blog. Bottom line: we can't compete with a party that promises "free stuff", and a growing electorate that wants, and will continue to expect that.

I see how that works in my own life. I have a small fine art photography business on a popular handmade website. The people who sell the most in my category are the ones who consistently offer BOGOs (buy one get one free), or substantially reduce their work through sales. This is why companies like Groupon and Social Living do so well. People want something for nothing, or at least very cheap. American enterprise can't compete with citizens who don't care about quality as long as it's cheap.

He discusses other reasons why he believes Barack Obama won another four years, and why this country is in a free fall. It's well worth a read.

The most charitable way of explaining the election results of 2012 is that Americans voted for the status quo – for the incumbent President and for a divided Congress. They must enjoy gridlock, partisanship, incompetence, economic stagnation and avoidance of responsibility. And fewer people voted. As I write, with almost all the votes counted, President Obama has won fewer votes than John McCain won in 2008, and more than ten million off his own 2008 total.

But as we awake from the nightmare, it is important to eschew the facile explanations for the Romney defeat that will prevail among the chattering classes. Romney did not lose because of the effects of Hurricane Sandy that devastated this area, nor did he lose because he ran a poor campaign, nor did he lose because the Republicans could have chosen better candidates, nor did he lose because Obama benefited from a slight uptick in the economy due to the business cycle.

Romney lost because he didn’t get enough votes to win.

That might seem obvious, but not for the obvious reasons. Romney lost because the conservative virtues – the traditional American virtues – of liberty, hard work, free enterprise, private initiative and aspirations to moral greatness – no longer inspire or animate a majority of the electorate. The notion of the “Reagan Democrat” is one cliché that should be permanently retired.

Ronald Reagan himself could not win an election in today’s America.

The simplest reason why Romney lost was because it is impossible to compete against free stuff. Every businessman knows this; that is why the “loss leader” or the giveaway is such a powerful marketing tool. Obama’s America is one in which free stuff is given away: the adults among the 47,000,000 on food stamps clearly recognized for whom they should vote, and so they did, by the tens of millions; those who – courtesy of Obama – receive two full years of unemployment benefits (which, of course, both disincentivizes looking for work and also motivates people to work off the books while collecting their windfall) surely know for whom to vote; so too those who anticipate “free” health care, who expect the government to pay their mortgages, who look for the government to give them jobs. The lure of free stuff is irresistible.